Analyzing and refuting the inaccuracies lodged against the lgbt community by religious conservative organizations. Lies in the name of God are still lies.

Monday, September 05, 2016

Holy Bullies and Headless Monsters celebrates 10th year

Happy 10th year anniversary to this blog!!

Tuesday, September 6 will mark the 10th anniversary of this blog. It's come a long way since being than an idea I had to pump up knowledge of a book I was self-publishing.

For the record, the book was somewhat of a disaster, but this blog has existed on its own to break barriers, get a bit of acclaim and a few awards, as well as put a great spotlight on a issue we've long needed to discuss - how the religious right and morality groups use junk science, cherry-picked science, and outright lies to create a pattern of deceit against the lgbt community. This pattern is then used to manufacture reasons to deny us equality under the law.

I like to think that I've done well to expose these lies and the entities who tell them. I also like to think that I've made history in my own little way as one of the many tireless lgbt activists and independent news figures. We've all come a long way from 2006 and have gotten so many victories because of our efforts.

I've certainly learned a lot about my community and myself. And it will be something I hope to continue the next 10 years.

The following is the first post I published here and reading it always pleases me. It reminds me of where this blog is now in comparison to where it began. It also reminds me that anyone willing to work and sacrifice for the better of his or her community will always succeed in their goals.

There are a bunch of organizations in this country who thrive on ignorance, fear, and a sense of entitlement.

They refer to themselves as "pro family" and even members of the gay community regard them as the religious right

With
all due respect, I don't see them as that. They are an anti-gay
industry who seeks to gain political power by building on the religious
beliefs and ignorance of people of faith. And they have been pretty
successful.

Central to this success are their so-called studies
on the gay community. In order to prove that gays and lesbians should
not have any protection of laws, they have created a written and oral
pattern of deception that is not only blatant in its attempts but
shameful in its audacity. In their zeal to prove the worst about the gay
community, the anti-gay industry runs roughshod over science and truth.
They have created a houses of pseudo-scientific studies based on
distortions, lies, headless monsters, and legitimate studies taken out
of context , which are then pushed by fake experts, Ph.D.s, conservative
columnists and bloggers, and ignorant people of faith all willing to
sacrifice their integrity on the altar of an alleged higher calling.

We know the claims these studies make:

gays have a short life spangays molest children at a higher level than heterosexualslesbians abuse their partners at a high levelgays are more violent and are prone to crimesgays are promiscuous and cannot handle the concept of marriage.

For
two years, I have studied the methodologies of so-called "pro family"
groups (i.e. Focus on the Family, Concerned Women for America, the
Traditional Values Coalition, etc) and am glad to say that their claims
are rooted in lies, outright deceptions, and legitimate studies with
portions cherry picked out.

In 2007, I will publish my book, Holy Bullies and Headless Monsters,
detailing just what how the anti-gay industry propagandizes about the
gay community. Through this blog, I will publish some of my findings and
update everyone as to the progress of my book. I will update this blog
on a weekly basis.

Now I must emphasis that I am not attacking
anyone's religion. I respect a Christian's right to believe that
homosexuality is an abomination. I also respect the right of the Boys
Scouts of America to prohibit gays from serving as members. Of course I
also believe that if the organization had any integrity at all, it
should refuse any form of public monies because some of this money is
derived from gay sources via taxes. And isn't accepting money from those
who you feel will not conform to your moral code just as bad as
allowing them in your group.

But I digress.

What I am
saying through my book and my blog is that distortions and lies in the
name of God are still distortions and lies. And anyone who knowingly
uses them and can still refer to themselves as a person of faith needs
to examine themselves.

Editor's note - I will be celebrating my blog's 10th anniversary with a September 17th party. Pictures will be posted.

About Me

Alvin McEwen is 46-year-old African-American gay man who resides in Columbia, SC.
McEwen's blog, Holy Bullies and Headless Monsters, and writings have been mentioned by Americablog.com, Goodasyou.org, People for the American Way, PageOneQ.com, The Washington Post, Raw Story, The Advocate, Media Matters for America, Crooksandliars.com, Thinkprogress.org, Andrew Sullivan's Daily Dish, Melissa Harris-Perry, The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell, Newsweek, The Daily Beast, The Washington Blade, and Foxnews.com.
In addition, he is also a past contributor to Pam's House Blend,Justice For All, LGBTQ Nation, and Alternet.org. He is a present contributor to the Daily Kos and the Huffington Post,
He is the 2007 recipient of the Harriet Daniels Hancock Volunteer of the Year Award and the 2010 recipient of the Order of the Pink Palmetto from the SC Pride Movement as well as the 2009 recipient of the Audre Lorde/James Baldwin Civil Rights Activist Award from SC Black Pride. In addition, he is a three-time nominee of the Ed Madden Media Advocacy Award from SC Pride.